Electrical connector



May 4, 1948- H. M. ROGERS ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR Filed June 24, 1943INVENTOR.

09ers Herberl M R M BY Patented May 4, 1948 ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR HerbertM. Rogers, Canton, Ohio. minor to The Hoover poration of Ohio Company,North Canton,

Ohio, a cor-,

Application June 24, 1943, Serial No. 492,005 1 Claim. (Cl. 174-46) Thepresent invention relates to an electrical connector such as can be usedwithin a hollow tubular handle of a suction cleaner.

An object of the invention is to provide a new and improved electricalconnector. Another ob- Ject is to provide novel means for anchoring theelectric contact in the body of the electrical connector and to securean electric cord to the contact. Another object is to provide aninexpensive electric contact having a slotted end for the fasteningmeans to secure the contact in the plug body. Further objects andadvantages of the invention will be apparent from the followingspecification and drawings wherein:

Figure 1 is a vertical section, partly in elevation, through the handleand socket of a suction cleaner;

Figure 2 is a section along the line 22 of. Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a section along the line 3-3 of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is a perspective view, partly in section,

showing the interior construction of the plug cap body, and

Figure 5 is an exploded in section, of the plug ca The embodiment of theinvention herein disclosed comprises the lower end of a hollow tubularsuction cleaner handle I 0 removably insorted in the tubular portion llof a split handle clamping socket in an enlarged portion l3 havingopposed walls H which are plvotally supported on an unshown cleaner bodyin a manner well known in the art.

Disposed in the lower end of the handle is a plug socket 15 having abody provided with a flanged end ll which rests against the extremelower edges of the handle Ill, a body portion l8 snugly engages theinner surface of the hollow handle, and a reduced body portion l3receives the power leads 20, 20 extending upwardly in the handle to aswitch, not shown, for controlling the circuit from a. power source tothe suction cleaner motor. A pair 01' suitable contacts 2| are mountedin the socket and are connected to the power leads 20, 20. g The socketis rigidly mounted in a predetermined position in the handle by a pairof pins 22 passing through the handle and the socket body to arrange thecontacts 2i one above the other in a. vertical plane passing through thelongitudinal center of the handle.

Disposed in the handle socket I2 is a plug cap 25 having a cylindricalbody 28 provided with a pair of spaced contact receiving openings 21 ofsubstantially rectangular cross-section and which perspective view,partly I2 terminating at its lower end extend from one end face 28 ofthe body 28 inwardly of the latter to a shoulder 29 formed by a portion30 of the plug body. A circular opening 3| is provided in each oi. theportions 30 of the plug cap body and extends from an enlarged recess 32at the opposite end 01' the body 26 to the rectangular opening 21, andopposed walls of each rectangular opening 21 are provided with arcuaterecesses 33 to form a continuation of the circular opening 3|. Therecess 32 spans the circular openings 3| and is formed with an end wall35 and an irregularly shaped peripheral wall 36.

A contact 31 of elongated rectangular crosssection is snugly disposed ineach rectangular opening 21 and has its inner end 38 abutting theshoulder 28 and its outer end extending be. yond the end 28 of the plugcap. The inner end oi. each contact is provided with a non-annular slotwhich is broached or threaded as at 44 for the reception 01' a screw 40which passes through the circular opening 3|. Motor leads 4|, 4|extending from the unshown motor are each connected to one of thecontacts 31 by means of an eyelet 42 disposed about the screw 40 betweenthe screw head 43 and the end wall 35 of the recess 32. The non-annularslot 44 in each contact 31 provides an inexpensive contact and means forsecuring the latter and the cord in the plug body, since it is notnecessary .to form an enlarged contact portion for the fastening screw40. The slots 44 may be formed by stacking a. plurality-of contacts inalignment and cutting the slots in one operation and thereafterbroachlng the slots. If desired a. block of metal may be slotted and theslots broached and thereafter the block of metal may be cut to providethe individual contacts 31.

In assembling the contacts 3'! and screws 40 in the plug cap, thecross-section of the rectangular openings 2! prevent the contacts fromrotating and the exposed threaded portions of the fastening screws 40which extend laterally beyond the thickness 01' the contacts 31 areaccommodated by the arcuate recesses 33 in the rectangular openings 21.The contacts 31 and motor leads 4| are rigidly connected together by thescrews 40, the latter drawing the inner ends 38 of the contacts 31against the shoulder 29, and the eyelets 42 of the motor leads rigidlybetween the screw heads 43 and the end wall 35 of the recess32. The openend of the recess 321s closed by an insulating plate 45 which has itsperipheral edge 46 contoured to fit snugly within the recess 32 and isprovided with an elongated opening 41 to receive the motor leads 4|.

The plug cap 25 is supported in the handle socket I! by a substantiallyU-shaped bracket 50 having its side walls attached to the side walls 14oi the enlarged portion ll of the handle socket l2 and its bight portion62 extends between the socket side walls ll. A portion 53 of the bracket50 extends into a marginal recess 54 oi the plug cap 25 and the latteris rigidly secured to the bight portion 52 by means of a screw 55threaded into an opening 58 in the plug cap body 28 to properly positionthe plug cap in the handle socket.

Arranged about the motor leads ll is a cord protector 60 having areduced portion 8| passing through an opening 62 in the bight portion 52of the bracket 50, and having an enlarged portion 63 disposed betweenthe bight portion 52 and the insulating plate 45 to thereby retain thecord protector in proper position.

In order to insert the plug cap 25 in the handle socket I2, the motorleads M are connected to the contacts 81, and then the cord protector 80is placed over the motor leads with its enlarged end 63 adjacent theinsulating plate 45. The reduced end 68 of the cord protector is passedthrough the opening 62 in the bracket 50, and the plug cap 25 and cordprotector are held rigidly in position in the handle socket by means ofthe screw 55, and the opposite ends of the motor leads may be connectedto the cleaner motor. The contacts 31 are arranged in predeterminedposition in the handle socket I! by means of a portion 53 of the bracket50 being disposed in the marginal recess 54 of the plug cap 25.Thereafter the handle II) with the plug socket l5 can be inserted in thehandle socket i2 and the contacts 37 connected with the contacts M ofthe plug socket IE to complete the electrical connection lggtween themotor leads 4! and the power leads I claim:

An electrical connector, comprising an insulating body having apassageway, an apertured way, said passageway at one side 01 saidapertured shoulder having a rectangular cross-section corresponding tosaid electrical contact to prevent rotation of the latter therein, athreaded non-annular slot at the anchor end of said electrical contact,a screw in said body having its head abutting said apertured shoulder onthe other side thereof and the threaded portion of said screw in saidnon-annular slot of said electrical connector, whereby tightening ofsaid screw draws said anchor end of said electrical contact against saidone side of said apertured shoulder and said screw head against saidother side of said shoulder to hold said contact in said body, saidanchor end of said electrical contact havin I a thickness'in one sectionthereof less than the diameter of said screw whereby portions of thelatter project radially outwardly of said electrical contact, andsaidpassageway having a recess to receive said portions of said screwprojecting radially outwardly of said electrical contact.

HERBERT M. ROGERS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

